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How Fit Do You Need to Be to Start CrossFit?

Do you get healthy before you go to the doctor? Do you eat a sandwich before you go out for dinner? Do you change your oil before you take your car in for a tune-up? I’m sure you know what I’m getting at. I get it, though. You think you need to be in shape before you start CrossFit. You’ve seen CrossFit on ESPN or you look at your friends or coworkers who do CrossFit and you think, “I could never do that.” You think you have to have a certain level of fitness before you start doing CrossFit because you are scared of being slow or sore or getting injured or [fill in the blank]. You are not alone.

The first time I ever heard the words “CrossFit,” I was told with a scoff by a gym owner that I was “not ready for it.” Of course the words my insecure mind and 30-pounds-overweight body heard were, “you are too fat for CrossFit”. My wife and I were both shocked and a little pissed, and to be honest, the sting lasted a long time. Fast forward 7 years and here I am as a CrossFit affiliate owner, hoping desperately to change the culture around CrossFit to prove that anyone can do it. Of course, you have to be willing to show up, and you have to be willing to sweat, but that’s IT! Still don’t believe me? Meet my mom, Donna:

My mom back squatting

My mom had hip replacement surgery three months ago and has been coming to CrossFit RE for the last six weeks. Yes, you read that right: six weeks after her hip replacement surgery she started CrossFit (and before that I had seen her exercise maaaaybe a half dozen times in my life). And now you’re probably thinking that sounds crazy and irresponsible and how could a son do that do his mother?! The reason is because ANYONE can do this stuff. Seriously, anyone. In fact, you already are, you just don’t call it CrossFit. You call it sitting down and standing up instead of “squats”; you call it putting a bag in the overhead compartment of a plane instead of a “push press”; you call it picking up a laundry basket instead of a “deadlift”; you call it playing with your kids or gardening or mowing the lawn. These are all movements we imitate in a CrossFit class — they are just called different things. The bonus is that unlike real life, a CrossFit class provides coaches who watch how your body moves, helping you be safe and efficient so you can improve.

Still feel like you have to “get in shape” before you try CrossFit? We can tell you dozens of stories to convince you otherwise: stories of those who show up on the first day 10, 20, or 200 pounds overweight; those who are suffering from depression or hating their bodies; those who get winded and sweaty when they have to climb the stairs at work; those who have low confidence and don’t think they deserve a successful, happy life; those who are battling a disease or who are just plain sick and tired of being sick and tired. In fact, you can read some of their stories on our website or reviews on our Google+ page. After you read a story to two, ask yourself whether it’s your turn to be an inspiration for someone else

One undercurrent of all these stories is that change happened because of CrossFit, not before it. It takes becoming part of a CrossFit community for someone to realize that it’s ok to not be perfect (or even to be really, really bad) at something. In fact, life is a lot more fun if you try stuff you’re terrible at — it will give you a reason to set goals and test yourself so you can experience new things. At CrossFit RE and SODO CrossFit, we are a group of people who suck at a lot of things, but enjoy getting better at them together. Let us prove it to you at our Community Day event on May 2. It’s a FREE workout for everyone, including kids. It’s a workout that we can scale to any level (yes, even if you had hip replacement surgery a couple months ago) and there will be free coffee and a chance to hang out and meet some people afterwards. Bring a friend or family member and get ready to kick off your weekend feeling great about what your body can do! Sign up below so we can make sure to have enough coaches and coffee ready. 🙂